GDC 09: Patapon 2 Update

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Earthend ahead.

By Greg Miller

OK. I kind of fibbed in the headline. Yes, Patapon 2 is here in PlayStation's GDC lounge, but Sony's really only showing off the beginning of the game and a bit of multiplayer. Don't get me wrong, that's cool and I'm glad folks are getting their hands on this title, but I've already written about that, shown you screens of that, and done a handful of videos on that. So, we're going to pretend that I've been playing the demo I have in my PSP strictly from the GDC lounge so that I can tell you a bit about what I've seen.

See, the PSP in my pocket is about 20 hours into this title… 20 hours into the demo of this title.

There goes my hero. Watch him as he goes.

Chances are you don't need me to summarize what's happening in Patapon 2, but I'll do it anyway. Last year, a quirky rhythm-strategy game was released and now it's time for the sequel. Again, you'll lead the Patapon tribe, a group of one-eyed cuties, across colorful plains by beating a quartet of tribal drums assigned to the PSP's face buttons. Different combinations of beats lead to different actions such as attack, defend, and retreat. The tribe's goal is to get to Earthend, and they're looking to you (their deity) to get them food, equipment, and past the foes and monsters they'll face on the way. If all of this is news to you, I fear for the future of the Internet. The original Patapon was IGN's 2008 PSP Game of the Year. Still, the easiest way to grasp the game is probably to see it in action on our video page.

Patapon 2 might look like Patapon 1.5 at first glance -- on a visual and audio side, not much has changed -- but when you start digging into this game, you'll find the new hooks. Now, you get a Hero who can change Patapon classes whenever he likes and can rise from the dead on the battlefield, there's an Evolution Tree filled with different types of characters that you can level up on an individual basis, and there are a bunch of new enemies.

OK. Noob briefing out of the way -- let's get down to business for the Patapon addicts like myself. The thing that's impressed me about this sequel so far is the unprecedented depth. In the first game, it took me a little more than 25 hours to beat the story and level up to the point that I felt OK with stopping my daily play sessions. With Patapon 2, I've sunk in 19 hours 44 minutes and 23 seconds and I still haven't gotten any of my Rarepons to maturity, I still have two (visible) minigames to unlock, I've only grabbed one other mask for my Hero, and it looks like I've got two full screen-sections of the story that I haven't touched. Now, I'm admittedly a little crazy about level grinding in this game so you might not spend as much time battling farting birds and crazy spider-like creatures as I have, but that's still a wealth of content to dig into.

Getting the best crew takes work.

Now that I'm further along, I can tell you another thing I dig about Patapon 2 -- the transparency. Back in the original title, it was a bit of a guessing game as to how you were going to get more ka-ching, meat, and so on. I mean, you knew you'd get those resources from hunting, but you could never be sure how much you'd get or if you'd get it from a particular fight. In Patapon 2 -- a game where the Evolution Tree spells out exactly what you need and makes resource management more important than ever -- getting specific resources quickly hasn't been a problem. Bosses have specific things that they're going to give out -- the Dogaeen gives wood, the Centura gives fangs, etc. -- but now with the addition of stuns, the bosses give out their items in a greater abundance. If you get on a roll with the Mochicchichi and get it to stumble a few times, it's easy to bank a bunch of bones. In the same vein, the minigames are doling out a ton specific items as well. Pan the trumpet-playing Pakapon is back, but this time the dancing tree Ubo Bon will drop a lot more if your performance is rocking -- I'm talking about wood, branches, and fangs. Meanwhile, you go play with the new conductor Shuraba Yapon. Here, you can wager items from your inventory and if you make Kururu the bell dance by pressing circle in time with the music, you'll get ka-ching. So, last year, we complained that it sucked we couldn't trade item; this year, we can. There are even different levels of these minigames; the higher you go, the greater the reward.

Truth is, I could write volumes on Patapon 2, but this is meant to be a quick GDC preview. Basically, you need to walk away knowing that there's a ton to do in this game and that I feel like I've only scratched the surface. Look for a full-blown video preview on new resource management stuff next week and more previews to follow.